By Wallace Mawire
Palestine Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Tamer Almassri, has strongly condemned and denounced the ongoing Israeli war crimes in the Gaza Strip, particularly the targeting of healthcare and medical facilities, infrastructure, and the resulting 19 civilian martyrs in the past 24 hours, including women and children, which he said constitutes a flagrant violation of international law, international humanitarian law, and the ceasefire.
The Ambassador said in a persistent pattern of systemic aggression, Israeli attacks killed at least 18 Palestinians in Gaza over a single 24-hour period, reflecting a dangerous escalation throughout the territory.
He said Israeli forces also targeted medicine warehouses attached to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir el-Balah, destroying essential medical supplies. He said by destroying the critical resources, the occupation has effectively turned medicine and illness itself into a weapon of war. The Ambassador said thousands of Palestinians requiring emergency medical treatment outside Gaza continue to be denied permission to leave.
He said civilians in Gaza are no longer facing a temporary food shortage; but are enduring a systematic deprivation of the basic means of survival due to the continuous blockade and severe restrictions on the entry of food, water, and medicine.
Talmer also highlighted that 1.4 million Palestinians face acute food insecurity while 74,000 children require urgent treatment for acute malnutrition.
The Ambassador said since October 2023, the cumulative death toll in the Gaza Strip has reached at least 73,375 Palestinians, the figure remains incomplete, as thousands of victims remain trapped under the rubble, inaccessible to ambulance and rescue crews due to constant bombardment and lack of equipment with atleast 174,162 others having also been injured.
The State of Palestine has urgently called upon the international community to assume its legal and moral responsibilities. The state said mmediate and decisive pressure must be exerted on Israel to fulfil its obligations under international law and adhere to ceasefire agreements to ensure the protection of Palestinian civilians and enable the rebuilding of Gaza.
The Ambassador said failure to act immediately would not only encourage further colonialist violence and accelerate Israel’s annexation of occupied Palestinian territory but would also undermine the credibility of the international legal system.